Exercise till you drop ... out?

Fitness classes do help you stick with the program, survey shows

Joining a fitness class can keep you exercising beyond the six-month dropout period that affects many.

Photograph by: Larry Wong
, Edmonton Journal

Here it is, folks, the secret to sticking with an exercise program longer than a few weeks or a few months: join a group fitness class.

Fifty per cent of people who start working out stop after six months. In other words, nothing has changed in the last 30 years, says Terry Skidnuk, recreation programmer for Strathcona County at Millennium Place in Sherwood Park .

"Despite all the new gyms, new equipment over the years - including machines with TV monitors or games - 24-hour all-access facilities, better, more qualified trainers, we have not seen that figure improve. Something has been missing."

To find out what, Skidnuk and other staff took a closer look at the members who most consistently use the recreational facility: "The very loyal and very faithful people who took group fitness classes."

Of 1,300 people who were registered in fitness classes in fall 2011, more than 70 per cent or over 900 people continued on.

"While we don't have stats on what happened to the others, it would be wrong to assume that all of them dropped off," Skidnuk says. "Some would have gone on to other programs at other facilities perhaps or just elected to change things up.

"Some would have dropped off, but the rates of success are much higher and that is because people do see positive results occurring and they are enjoying the experience."

The dynamics of a group fitness class include fun, sociability and self-efficacy (a person's judgment of their ability to succeed) - the three key things that many people say keeps them exercising, Skidnuk notes.

"It's a mistake to think that most people will know what to do when they come to a fitness facility and that is a big reason why 50 per cent of new exercisers drop out within the first six months - they are often on their own and don't know what to do, how to do it. Or they have learned a few exercises, but they have become bored and disengaged, which is a natural thing to happen if they are doing the same workout repeatedly."

That's why group fitness is such a powerful a tool, he explains.

"It gets people connected so they are not on their own. They have the guidance of an instructor, the workouts are more engaging and varied, and there is that all-important sociability factor."

Skidnuk says he knows people who, after meeting through group fitness, formed running groups, travelled together, or still have coffee after class.

"In one of our classes (for older adults), everybody is on email together so if somebody is away unexpectedly for a week or so, they are contacted to see what's up. It's a great support system that we as a facility did not develop. It came from the participants themselves," Skidnuk explains.

As part of a new approach - "maximum results in minimal time" - Millennium Place has put more resources into group fitness, increasing the number of fall classes and variety of classes offered from 60 to 85 per week, Skidnuk says. New classes include Jump Rope Max, Masala Bhangra dance, kung fu and ViPR.

They've addressed common barriers to fitness such as lack of time, lack of confidence working out in a facility, and cost, by adding 15-minute, 40-minute and 45-minute classes to the standard 60-minute fitness classes available.

"If time is a factor or level of physical fitness is a factor, 60 minutes can be a lot to expect (from someone new to exercise)," Skidnuk explains.

"There wasn't really a lot of science behind 60-minute classes," he continues. "It had more to do with payroll (requirements)."

A 15-minute core class, for example, allows someone to try group fitness and come to see that classes have really changed in the last 20 to 30 years. They're no longer heavily choreographed, participants aren't required to wear a certain outfit, and you don't have to follow along to the music.

The changes have increased the number of people taking group classes, Skidnuk says.

People who work out on their own can fall into a trap of doing too much too soon, becoming injured or really sore, or they continue to work out at the same intensity so they stop seeing progress, become frustrated, and quit exercising.

"Group fitness provides some guidance without the cost of working one-on-one with a trainer," Skidnuk says. "Participants have support and learn how to exercise properly, increasing their chances for being successful."

Some people are very self-motivated and are able to do things on their own successfully, Skidnuk notes, "but we're not talking about the majority.

"Most people feel like a fish out of water when they first come to work out. Those most successful with exercising and sticking to it tend to be part of a group."

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